The National PhD Day committee would like to thank all attendees, speakers, workshopleaders, career coaches, and sponsors for making National PhD Day 2017 a success! We hope you all had an inspiring day with the keynote lectures by prof. Mike Jetten and prof. Maartje van der Woude in the morning and the workshops in the afternoon. We would also like to congratulate prof. Mike Jetten on his well deserved Supervisor of the year award!

Photographs of the day are forthcoming and we will upload those to our Facebook page as soon as possible. For information on either the keynote speakers or workshops and contact details, check the pages for speakers or workshops. The slides for the lecture by prof. Mike Jetten can be found here.

To make sure we keep improving future editions of National PhD Day, we would appreciate it if you could help us by filling out this evaluation form.

Registration for National PhD Day 2017 has closed! We hope you are all as excited as we are for this Saturday. In case you have any questions about the details of National PhD Day please check out our FAQ:

Q: I haven’t registered but I would really like to go to National PhD Day 2017, are there any cancellations or tickets left?

A: The registration for National PhD Day 2017 is closed, so you’ll have to try again next year!

Q: What if I just go to Nijmegen on the 23rd and try to register on site?

A: We’re sorry but there is no possibility to register on site. In order to ensure that people who registered do get to go to their workshops, we will be checking names at the entrance. Our tip: like the National PhD Day Facebook page and be one of the first to know when registration for National PhD Day 2018 starts!

In preparation for the National PhD day 2017 on September 23rd at Radboud University in Nijmegen (Comeniuslaan 2, 6525 HP Nijmegen) a few workshops have homework assignments to help you make the most out of your attendance. Check the overview below to see if your workshop is asking you to do such an assignment! Haven’t registered yet? It’s still possible here!

Workshop: Design a thesis cover that stands out!

Hi PhD!

Thank you for subscribing for my workshop! I’m sending you a small, fun assignment to do at home as a warm-up.
Over the next week look around you. Gather things you like, take pictures. What do you like about them? The colour, the composition, the letters? You can have a look at theses, but you really don’t have to. Magazines, tickets, music posters, they can all inspire you.
Please take everything you found with you to the workshop. It’ll help you to get going. Also, don’t forget to take a pencil.
Enjoy, you’ll see the world with new eyes!

Evelien

Workshop: Do you dare to live to your capabilities?Preparative assignments

Take a couple of minutes to scribble down your thoughts on the following questions.

What made you decide to go for a PhD?

Who are your role models, if you had to pick some?

Have you ever experienced a complete sense of “flow”, of being exactly at the right place at the right time? When was that? What were you doing?

Suppose you enjoy full financial independence. You can afford anything. What are you going to do?

What do you want to experience?

What fascinates you, really keeps you occupied?

What do you want to learn?

What would you like the epitaph on your grave to read?

Workshop:How to stand out during your dissertation defense

Write down and bring 5 questions that you expect to be asked during the defense.

In addition to the lectures and workshops available to you on NPD 2017, we also offer the opportunity to discuss with professional career coaches how you can build a career that is best for you and your research. They will be available during the lunch break and in the afternoon to discuss your career plans and check your CV. During the registration on September 23rd (10 – 11 AM) you will be able to register for a time slot with these coaches.

Since 2009 she supports scientist to make the most of their PhD Power, benefitting from her research background and her personal struggles in career transition in the past. In 2016 she established Qia Consultancy & Training to provide consultancy to research organisations in the set-up of PhD programmes for career orientation. In addition, she runs workshops and offers individual coaching to support scientists in gaining better insights in their capabilities and intrinsic motivation. Critical steps to make decision towards fulfilling careers.

Originally educated as a sociologist and education expert at Wageningen University, I have now found my niche in providing personal career development counselling. I feel privileged to be able to accompany people on a stretch of their life path and to be one of the instruments to have helped during a particular stage. I work since 1993 as a career consultant, coach and trainer for highly educated people. I already accompanied hundrerds of people to a (better) job. My strong point is being able to translate insight about people into practical advice that can help you to reach your goals. I use my clarity, empathy and creativity to make a true difference.

Harry is a career counselor since 1993 and he is involved in several projects on different levels regarding employability. In 2007 he started his own bureau and now he has several assignments in training and advising people entering the working process or continuing their career. During this period he collected a fair knowledge and network about the actual labour market. Selected projects: NWO/FOM career planning and individual guidance, Phace Utrecht, UvA, NOVA career program, University of Twente career orientation.

Shape your careerA workshop by drs. Harry Linders, career coach/advisor with his own bureau sinds 2007. Selected projects: NWO/FOM career planning and individual guidance, Phace Utrecht, UvA, NOVA career program, University of Twente career orientation.

Description of workshop:
An overview of approach and strategies of (Dutch) labour market. The reality of the labour market is discussed and the workshop explains differences in CV, the use of cover letters and the importance to build and use a professional network. Additionally, the workshop explains in detail what PhD candidates need to prepare and plan their next successful step in their careers.

National PhD Day 2017 – Complete schedule
One week left to register for the National PhD Day 2017! Dare to stand out and come join us at Radboud University in Nijmegen. The day is packed tight with keynote lectures, twelve interesting workshops, the supervisor award, and loads of networking opportunities. The information market is available to you the entire day. Take this day to work on your unique profile as a PhD candidate and discuss how to stand out with peers and experts in different fields!

Description of lecturePlanning an academic career is hard as there are many uncertainties and limited possibilities. By reflecting on my own career path and by sharing some fortunate and less fortunate choices I’ve made over the years, I want to address the necessity and value of daring to stand out in the right way.

Keynote speech by prof. Mike JettenThe ‘magic’ mix for an outstanding career inscienceWhat makes your lecture stand out?My PNN lecture stands out as it provides self-confidence and academic leadership skills as magic ingredients for a successful career in science.

Description of lectureWith all modern developments and methodological advances, the future is bright for young scientist. Nevertheless, the impediments of a scientific career are often perceived as disproportionate. The continuous competition for projects and the lack of security are not appealing, especially for women that lack role models. In addition to scientific guidance, excellent university mentors should teach academic leadership skills that contribute up to 85% of your success. As a strong positive self-image is one of the best preparation for great achievements, positive feedback, praise and a growth mind set are essential ingredients for an outstanding career in science.

A workshop by Madis Talmar, lecturer on Entrepreneurship and Innovation at TU/e and JADS.

Description of workshop:Ever wondered if you could become an entrepreneur? In this session, we will consider if and how your PhD could be turned into a business. You will learn how to play around with the main concepts in entrepreneurship, such as opportunity, value proposition and market segment. We will then try to translate your research work into these entrepreneurship concepts and discuss how to empower oneself to take action towards becoming an entrepreneur.

Description of workshop:
How do you arrive at the decisions that determine your career as a PhD? The options may be far more extensive than you may imagine, especially in today’s world. So what is going to determine these choices? Your knowledge, your capabilities, the opportunities that just happen to arise
We challenge you to discover your PhD Power and the internal factors that drive you in what you do. The question then becomes: to what extent will you dare to let your true motivation determine your career path?
Both trainers are PhD graduates and pursued research careers. When they took the leap and applied their PhD skills outside research, it resulted in unexpected but successful and rewarding career paths. Take a few minutes to read about those career paths here!
There is an assignment in preparation for this workshop.